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Core Areas

AEREC graduate programs provide students with the tools, skills, and experience necessary to conduct theoretical and applied research in our program's three core areas: food and agricultural economics, environmental and natural resource economics, and regional economic development.

Food and Agribusiness Economics

The food and agricultural system is changing rapidly.
Globalization, biotechnology, the Internet, and other forces are
altering the landscape for everyone in the food and agricultural
system – input supply companies, farmers, food processors,
distributors, retailers, and consumers.

Our program can provide students with the economic tools and
techniques to understand and improve decision-making by businesses,
consumers, and organizations in the food and agricultural system. We
provide advanced training in the economics of food and agricultural
markets, particularly from the perspective of the food and
agricultural system as a whole. We also offer advanced training in
economic analysis of international food and agricultural trade, food
and agricultural policies, technological change, and how consumer and
environmental concerns affect the food and agricultural system.

Environmental and Natural Resource Economics

People everywhere have a strong interest in the environment and
natural resources. Major issues include climate change, water
availability and quality, land use, biodiversity, sustainable
development, and the environmental effects of globalization.

Our program provides advanced training in economic methodologies
used to assess the benefits and costs of alternative options for
protecting natural resources and the environment. We can provide
students with the economic tools and techniques needed to understand
and improve environmental and natural resource decision-making in the
government and private sector. We also offer graduate students the
analytical tools to understand interactions between the economy and
the environment – how economic change affects the environment and vice
versa.

Regional Economic Development

Economic development and growth is a high priority worldwide.
However, economic growth is always uneven. Small communities and rural
areas face major challenges to their development efforts.

Our program can provide students with the economic tools and
techniques needed to understand regional economic development and
improve decision-making by citizens and local communities. We are able
to provide students with advanced training in the economics of
regional labor markets, particularly as labor market conditions affect
poverty and unemployment. We also offer advanced training in the
economics of population growth, migration, and household
decision-making. Our training in regional economic development extends
from the United States to countries all over the world.